India unlikely to abide by carbon neutral target

Reuters

India is unlikely to bind itself to a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions goal by 2050, government sources said, despite diplomatic pressure from the United States and Britain to do so to help slow global warming.

India is the world’s third-biggest carbon emitter and thus is vital in the fight against climate change currently focused on reaching zero emissions by mid-century or thereabouts.

The country’s energy demand is projected to grow by more than any other nation over the next two decades and the worry is that it may have to cut back on consumption if it were to tie itself to a hard emissions deadline, two sources involved in the discussions said.

“We may not be able to commit ourselves to net-zero emissions, it is a delicate problem,” said one of the sources, who did not wish to be identified.

India will instead stick to the Paris pledge to reduce its carbon footprint by 33-35 percent from its 2005 levels by 2030 and is aiming to outperform those goals, the source said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target of generating 450 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030 which is five times current capacity and two and half times the Paris pledge.

“That’s a significant transformation of the energy mix. So in that sense we are already ahead of the curve, no point making exaggerated claims,” the source said.

But international pressure is growing in the run-up to an Earth Day summit that US President Joe Biden is due to host on April 22 for leaders of 40 countries, including India, followed by a Group of Seven meeting in Britain to which India has been invited and culminating in a global climate conference in Scotland in November.

US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry told an Indian conference last month that striving towards carbon neutrality by mid-century was a critical commitment.

British politician Alok Sharma, who is organizing the COP 26 climate conference in Scotland, met Indian government leaders, including Modi, in Delhi last month to push for greater commitments.

Powerful action by India would encourage other countries to follow suit, Sharma suggested.

The Indian environment ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

But officials have debated the net-zero target and whether it was realistic and in line with the country’s development needs, a second source privy to the discussions said.

Jayant Sinha, a lawmaker from Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, submitted a private bill in parliament this month for a legally binding net zero commitment, arguing that it would help India draw investments worth billions of dollars.

“There have been two schools of thought within the government. One is if you go for zero emissions, you will become a sort of a global icon,” said the second source.

“The other is a more pragmatic view. Let’s stick to the commitments we have already made, meet our energy needs. Our energy needs are much higher than many of these countries,” the source said.